Shoe surface coating



SHOE SURFACE COATING @Mutual 5 Oct. 27, 1931.

l S. W. BOURN SHOE SURFACE GOATING Filed July 5, 1924 2 SheeiS-Shee(l 2Patented -ct. 2i, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE STEPHEN W. BOUBN, OFBRISTOL, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOB TO UNITED SHOE ML- CHINERY CORPORATION,OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY suon amaca coA'rINGApplication nea my s, 1924. serial No. raam.

This invention relates to coating boots and shoes and is' hereindisclosed in a machine for and a novel method of applying a iluid suchas cement to the foxing areas and bot- U toms of shoes.

During the manufacture of a canvas tennis shoe and preparatory to theattachment of the rubber sole, a strlp of gum rubber is applied to thelower margin of the periphery of the shoe to which the edge of the soleis later vulcanized. In order to secure this strip of gum rubber, knownas the foxing, to the canvas top or upper of the tennis shoe, a stripeof cement 1s applied to the lowermost l5 margin of the sides of the shoeadjacent `to the ybottom of the shoe in the section known as the foxingarea. Although various machines have been suggested for this operationof foxing cementing, rior to m invention 3 it has been usually er ormedby and. For

high grade work, owever, a stripe of uniform width must be applied sothat in the finished shoe the cement will come exactly to the upper edgeof the foxing strip in order 5 to secure it rml to theshoe, andwill notproject above this strip. If it so happens that the stripe of cement istoo wide, it will show above the foxing stri in the completed 'shoethereby producing a lemish which can only be removed with difficultyand4 which usually results in makingthe shoe a second. Having this inmind, an object of the invention is to render it easier for the operatorto apply a coating to the fo area of a shoe quickly and accurately so tat the line of demarcation between the foxing area and the uncoatedportion of the u per of the shoe is sharpl defined and exact y located.To this end 'have provided a novel method of coating the foxin area of ashoe in accordance with which t e u r'of theshoe ab'ove the foxing areais shie ed from the application of cement and the upper edge of thestripe of cement is properly positioned. As

herein exemplifed,-a shoe and an a rtured shielding member arranged tosurround the shoe are brought into cooperative relation,

with the margin of the o emng closel related to the shoe and arrangeexactly atedge of the fox-ing area and cementis applled e upper totheqexposed foxing area. Excessive care or skill in applying the cementis not required and the whole foxinO area may be quickly and accuratelycoate Another object of the invention is to pro- Vide an improvedmachine for coating the shoe and constructed and arranged to surroundthe shoe with the edge of the aperture located at the upper edge of thefoxing area.

As herein illustrated the edge of the apertured shielding member iscurved heightwise of the shoe so that it coincides with the upper edgeof the foxing area and exposes an area of substantially uniform width.

Still another feature of the invention includes means for turning a shoeto present portions of the foxing area successively to a cement-applyingdevice which is movably mounted, thereby at least in part to compensatefor the irregular outline of the shoe, and having, interposed betweenthe applying device and the shoe, shielding means constructed andarranged to coact with the shoe atthe upper edge of the foxing areawhereby the stripe of cement applied to the shoe will be substantiallyuniform in width and have its upper edge at a uniform distance from thebottom of the shoe.

In accordance with features of the invention, the illustrated machine isarranged to rotate. the shoe about a xed axis anda fluid applyingdeviceis mounted for reciprocation toward and away from the axis ofrotation, means being provided to cause the applying device to followthe outline of the work as it is rotated. As illustrated, theconstruction and arrangement are such that gravity tends to hold theapplying device in contact with Y to the shoe support moves the fluidapplying device positively to and fro'to keep it in the desired'relation to the margin of the rotating work.

Present shoe factory practice usually requires the application of aseries of coatings so that, in spite of the porosity of the work, asufficient quantity of the adhesive will remain upon the surface of thework securely to bind the foxing strip to the canvas of the upper. Inorder, therefore, that the illustrated machine may be operated to applymore than one coating to the shoe and in accordance with features of theinvention, means are rovided for rotating the shoe a predetermine numberof revolutions and for then stopping the machine. Still other means Aareprovided for automatically shutting oz' the supply fluid when the workhas been rotated a given number of revolutions.

These and other features of the invention are set forth in thefollowingspecification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwhich,- y

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of my improved machineillu-strating means for rotating the work and the means for applyingliquidthereto. l

Figure 2 is a front view showing a portion of a machine with the workmounted on the rotatable plate and showingthe liquid-apl plying means asmounted to reciprocate durthe supplying action.

in Figure 3 is a horizontal section through the ving provided forrotating the work about a relatively fixed axis and cooperating meansprovided for moving the duid-applying device towards and from the axialcenter about which the work rotates for the purpose of @applying thefluid to the desired portion of which is journaled on the frame 10 andi-s rotated from a drive pulley 14 (Fig. 6) by the work, which may bethe foxing portion, or the adjacent margin of the bottom of the shoe, orany other similar portion thereof.

With reference to the drawings, the machine has a` frame 10 in which ismounted a rotatable face plate 11 on which the work such as a lastedtennis shoe 12 is mounted. This face plate is itself mounted on a shaft13 means of meshing gears 15, 16, the latter of which is loosely mountedon a vertical shaft` 17. A sliding clutch member 18 is splined o thisshaft 17 to cooperate with a clutch memshown as adapted to apply liquidto the bottom of the shoe, I have mounted a verticallydisposed slideplate 24 to slide in Ways provided by guides 25 on the main, uprightframe, which plate isprovided with a bracket 26l in which a tube 27 isrigidly mounted to support the brushes21 and 23. These brushes aresupplied with liquid from a supply tank 28 through a flexible tube 29joined to the tube 27.

This slide plate 24 is provided with a roller 30 which engages thegroovel 20 in the face plate 11, whereby the rotation of this face platecauses the slide plate 24 to reciprocate towards and from the axis onwhich the work rotates.

A portion of the weight of the slide plate and the tube is supported bya spring 31 which is-coiled about a guide rod 32, the upper end of thespring engaging a boss 33 on the slide plate, while the lower endyengages a boss 34 on the frame, the guide rod 32 extending through thislatter boss.

A blower 34 is provided to generate air pressure in the liquid supplytank for the purpose of forcing and feeding this liquid to the applyingbrushes. This blower 34 being arranged to force air up through pipe 35into the chamber above the liquid.

Inasmuch as it may be desired to apply one or more successive coatingsto the peripheral margin of the shoe, it is found convenient to arrangethe mechanism so that the shoe may be rotated for any desired number ofturns and then stopped without requiring the operator to keep track ofthe number of revolutions made. To this end automatic mechanisfn isprovided for regulating the number of turns that the work shall make|during application of the liquid thereto and for then causing themachine to stop. I have, accordingly, connected an operating handle 36to the clutch 18 and to 'this operating handle is connected a trip rod37 which extends up through the frame table 38. The rod 37 is providedwith a latch lip 39, see Figure 4, which engages the upper edge of thetable thereby serving to hold the clutch in engagement, and in order tothrow this latch 39 out of engagement with the table, I have provided anarm 40 mounted' on a short shaft 41,

ber on the gear 16. By a connection through les ' ion gear 44, idlergear 45, (Fig. 5), large gear` vwhich: shaft is rotated from the shaft17 through mitre gears 42, short shaft 43, pin- 46, shaft 47 and mitregears 48. The ratio of these gears 44 land 46 determines thenumproducethe best work, the machine is pro.-A

vided with automatic mechanism for stopping the flow of fluid at the endof each operation in timed relation to the stopping of the shoe. Thetime for shutting off the iuid may or may not coincide with the stoppingof the shoe. Conse uentl in order to arrest the flow of the' uid rom thetank 28 to vthe brushes 21 and 23,- I have mounted a valve on the tube51 and on thisvalve I have mountedan -arm 52 which engages a cam plate53 on the shaft 41 so that as said shaft rotates, a notch 54 in theplate 53 is presented beneath the valve lever 52 which permits thislever to drop under tension of spring 55 to close the valve and shut 0Ethe supply of fluid to the brush.

In some instances it is found of advantage to be able to stop the feedof the liquid. after a single application thereof to the work and at thesame time to permit the work to continue its rotation to facilitatedrying one coat of the liquid before another is applied. To accomplishthis result in a simple way, I have hinged at the outer endof arm 40whereby 1t may be tipped up by the operator and swung back upon itselfso that when rotatedit will not engage and-knock off the latch 39 tostopthe machine, only accomplishing this result when swung down intoextended position by the operator, 'as shown in the drawings.

Having now described the general arran ement of the machine it remainsto descri e that improved feature of my invention by means of which theportion of the upper lying above the foxing' area is proteclted and theline of demarcation between the stripe of cement and the uncoatedportion of the shoe upper is accurately controlled. In the arrangementherein illusvtrated a portion of the lasted shoe which is not to becoated is protected by means of an apertured shield 56 entirelysurrounding the shoe and having the edges of its opening brought intoclose relation to the shoe at the upper edge of the foxing area. Theedge of the o ening in the shield 56 is, as will be seen rom thedrawings, curved hei htwise Vof the shoe so as to coincide accurate ywith theupper edge of the foxing area to expose an area ofsubstantiallyl uniform width.

This guard or shield 56 may be supported in any suitable way, the guardherein illustratedbeing provided with a iiange 57 secured to the faceplate 11 and extending down to the upper edge of the foxing portion.

-Since the shield and the shoe are both mounted upon the same supportingplate l1, their Vrelative position is accurately determmed for any sizeand style of shoe and it 1s only necessary for the operator to move ashoe through the apertured shielding member to bring it into cooperativeengagement with the supporting plate ll in order to be sure that thepredetermined portion at the lower part of the shoe is exposed'beyondthe edge of the shielding device. understood that a succession of shoesof the same slze, and shape may be mounted upon the machine, one afteranother., and posi- 'tioned within the guard.' Because of the shapeofthe guard and of the shoe, it will not be necessary to remove theguard each time the shoe is changed, but only when the s ize or type ofshoe to be inserted is considerably different from those previouslytreated.

In practising my novel method by the aid lof the illustrated machine,the operator will take a lasted ,shoe l2 of a size for which the machine1s fitted at the moment, and pass it through lthe opening of theshielding device 56 and mount it upon the rotatable work It will besupporting plate 11. By reason of the design of the machine, this willlocate the shoe exactly with respect to the shielding member and theoperator will proceed'to start the machine by manipulation of the handlever 36. A protected shoe will then be rotated past the cement applyingv,device which will coat both the foxing area and thebottom of the shoe,said applying device being moved to atnd tle cause it to rest in easyengagemen w1 t e peri heral ortion of the shoe. After the shoe Ihasmalde the desired number of revolutions, the automatic mechanismheretofore described will shut .off

the cement and stop the rotation of the shoe support elthersynchronously or at the desirlel interval.

y improved device for a l in li uid to shoes-and other articles,isvijyysirpleqand practical in construction and effective in itsoperation and by its use liquid may be ap- `plied to work havingirregular outlines.

I claim: 1'. In a shoe surface coating machine, means for rotatablysupporting a shoe, means for rotating said supporting means, a spreaderfor applying fluid to the shoe, and means for reciprocating saidspreader towards and les from the axis of rotation of the shoe as the Ilatter rotates to keep the spreader in contact with the shoe.

2. In a` shoe surface coating machine,

means for supporting a shoe for rotation aboutan axis, a liuid spreadermounted'- for to-and-fro movement, and means including a pattern plateconstructed and arranged to move said spreader to follow the outline ofthe shoe as it rotates.

3.In a shoe ,surface coating machine, means for rotating a shoe about arelatively fixed axis, a fluid spreader, and means for moving saidspreader to cause it to move in and out in accordance with the shape ofa shoe so as to follow the outline of the shoe as it rotates.

4. In a shoe surface coating machine, means for rotating a shoe about arelatively fixed axis, a movably mounted fluid spreader, and cam meansfor controlling the movement of said spreader. in timed relation tomovement of the shoe so that the spreader will follow the outline of theshoe as rotated.

5. In a shoe surface coating machine, means for rotating a shoe, a fluidspreader, means for causing said spreader to moveand follow the outlineof the shoe as it rotates, and a guard member rotating with said shoefor restricting the effective action of the spreader.

6. In a shoe surface coating machine, means for rotating a shoe, a fluidapplying device slidably supported above the shoe and resting on theshoe, and a cam for reciprocating said device to and fro to cause it tofollow the outline of the shoe as the latter is rotated.

7. In a shoe surface coating machine, means for rotating a shoe, a.fluid applying device, slidably mounted above the shoe, resilient lmeanstending tobalance the weight of'said device, and a cam for positivelymoving said device to and fro to cause it to move towards-and from theaxis of rotation of the shoe and to follow the outline ofthe shoe whileapplying the fluid.

8. In a shoe surface coating machine, means for rotating a shoe, a.fluid applying device having a shut-ofi", a .camv for moving saidapplying device towards and from the axis of rotation of the shoe tovfollow the outline of the shoe while applying the fluid, and'stomechanism responsive to the rotation of the shoe constructed andarranged to act upon the shoe rotating means and the fluid shutoffthereby to arrest the action of the machine and the'low of the fluidafter apredetermined number of revolutions of the shoe. 9. In a shoesurface coating machine, a work supporting plate/,means for rotatin saidplate and work, a cam groove in sai plate following the general outlineof the shoe to be treated,and a slide plate carrying fluidapplying meansand caused to reciprocate by engagement with said cam groove to causethe applying means to follow the outline of the shoe.

10. Ina shoe surface coating machine, a work supporting plate, means-forlrotating Lena-s55 l said plate and work,l a cam ove' in saidplatefollowing the eneral out ine ofthe shce to be treated, as 1de platecarrying 'fluid applying means and caused to reciprocate by engagementwith said cam groove to cause the applying means to follow the outlineof the shoe, a supply tank, and a flexible tube connecting sald tankthrough which fluid is sup lied to said ap lying means.

11. n a shoe sur ace coatin machine, means for rotating a shoe, a movaly mounted spreader member positioned to apply- Iliquid to the bottom ofthe shoe, means moving said spreader member to-and from the axis of theshoe including a cam constructed and arranged to control the movement ofthe said means to cause the spreader member to follow the outline of theshoe.

12. In a shoe surface coating machine,

means for rotating a. shoe, a spreader member for applying -li uid tothe surface of the shoe, and a guar member rotating with said shoe andprotectin that portion of the surface not to be treated.

1.3. In a shoe surface coating machine, a. frame, a work support, afluid spreader, means for moving both the work andthe spreaderrelatively to the frame and to each other in applying the fluid to theWork, and stopping mechanisml for arresting the flow of the fluid to thespreader after a predeterfor mined number of revolutions of the work.

i 14. The method of coating the lfoxing area of a shoe which consists inlrelatively positioning a shoe and a shielding device in a closerelation toy cover up the whole upper part of the shoe so that only apredetermined annular portion of the lower part ofthe shoe, known as thefoxing area, is exposed, holding this vrelation constant and applyingcement to at least the greater portion of the exposed foxing area.

15. The method of coating the foxing area of a shoe which consists inmovin a shoe into position with respect lto a shie ding devicesurrounding the shoe thereby to expose the foxing area while protectingall of that part p of the shoe upper above the foxing area from theapplication of cement, and applying cement to at least the greaterportion of the exposed foxingarea.

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"16. rlfhe method of applying cement tothe foxing area of a shoe whichconsists in moving the lshoe through an apertured shielding member toexposethe foxing area While pro'- tecting the part of the shoe upperabove the foxing area from the. application of cement, and causing arelative movement of translation between the shielded shoe and thecement applying means while applying cement to at least thegreaterportion of the exposed foxing area. 1 f

17. That method of applying cement to the foxing areaofy a shoe, theupper portion of the shielded shoe to coat the line of the bottom of theshoe.

oplying a stripe of cement to the foxing area assassin? which issurrounded by a shield to prevent the application of cement thereto,which is characterized by causing arelative movement of translationbetween an applying device and the shielded shoe to present successiveortions of at least the greater portion of the ox'- ing area. to theapplying device.

18.- That method of applyingcement tothe foxing area of a shoe, thewhole upper portion of which is shielded to prevent the application ofcement thereto which is characterized'by causing a relative movement oftranslation between an applyingl device and w ole vertical extent ofeach successive portion of the foxing area at any part ofthe shoe whichisl brought into cooperative relation with the applying device, andmoving the shielding I means with the shoe to maintain substantially aoconstant the relation between the two.

19. That method of applying cement to the foxing area of a shoe whichconsist-s in applying to the shoe a shielding device to surround andprotect the portion of the upper lying above the foxing area,positioning said shielded sh'oe in operative relation to a cementapplying device and causing relative movement of the shoe with itsshielding device and the applying device to coat the whole of theunshielded foxing area.

20. In a foxing-cementer, cement applying means, and a shield having ashoe-receivingt opening correspondingrv in shape substantially to theperipheral outline of the bottom ofa 35" shoe and constructed andarranged to protect the upper of a shoe above the foxing area from theapplication of cement while exposing the foxing area of the shoe to theaction of the cement applying means.

21. In a foxing-cementer, means for applying a stripe of cement to thefoxing area of a shoe, and means for controlling the line of demarcationbetween the stripe of cement and lthe portion of the shoe upper abovethe foxing area, said last-named means comprising a shield having anopening corresponding in outline substantially to the peripheral out-22. In a foxing-cementer', means for apofva shoe, a shield having ashoe-receiving opening corresponding in outline to the shape of thebottom of the shoe, and means for determining the position of a shoerelatively to the opening in said shield to locate portions of theupperof the shoe respectively on opposite sides of the shield, saidpositioning means and said shield being constructed and ar- "ranged todetermine the position vupon the shoe of the upper edge of .the stripeof cement and to protect the portion of the upper above the foxing areafrom the application of cement.

23. In afoxing-cementer, a shield having an opening corresponding inshape vsubstan'-,

an opening corresponding in shape substan-` tially to the peripheraloutline ofthe bottom of a shoe and constructed and arranged to bebrought into juxtaposition to theupper of a shoe, uponrelativepositioning movement of the shield and the shoe, to define vtheupper edgeV of the foxing area of the shoe, said vshield being curvedheightwise ofthe shoe' thereby to expose a foxing area' of substantiallyuniform Width, and means for applying a stripe of cement to said oxingarea as so defined.

25. In afoxing cementing machine, a cement applying device, a movableshoe'sup-l port, shoe-surrounding means carried thereby for shieldingthe Whole upper portion of Va shoe to protect said portion from theapplication of cement, and means -for causing a relative movement oftranslation between saidcement applying device and the shoe support a'ndshielding` means to present successive portions of the foxing area t'othe applying device;

26. In a foxing cementing machine, a shoe support, means for applyingcement to the foxing area of ashoe on said support. an imperforateshielding member surrounding the'shoe to protect that portion of theupper of. the shoe which lies above the forcing area, and means forsupporting said shielding member in a predetermined relation to the shoesupport constructed and arranged to cause the edgeof the shieldingmember to come automatically into the desired relation to the edge ofthe foxing area as the shoe is' applied to the shoe support.

27. In a foxing cementing machine, cement applying means, means forsupporting a lasted shoe, means for applying-cement to the foxing' area'of the shoe, and an imperiorate shielding member mounted in fixed re-liro iat

ist

support constructed and arranged to transto maintain the upper edge ofthe foxing fer a lasted shoe from vone position to anarea at substantiala uniform distance other past said applying device in order to from/thebottom of t e shoe.

' eect the coating of the whole of the foxng f area of the shoe withcement, and an imperforate shielding member mounted on said movablesupport for movement with .the shoe, said shielding member beingconstructed and arranged to surround the shoe with an edge lyingimmediately adjacent to the upper edge of the-foxing area whereby theupper of the shoe-above the foxing,r area isv protected from theapplication of cement.

29. In a foxing cementing machine, a

ed and arranged to support a lasted shoe and movable to present variousportions of the foxing area of the shoe to the cement l ablv mounted'cement applvina` device. means" ao, for rotating said support :andsimultaneouslv moving said 'applvipg device to maintain it incooperative relation with'the Foxing area of the moving shoe. and animperforate shielding member mounted on said movable support andconstructed and arranged to protect from the application of cement thel4 upper of the shoe' rabove the foxing area thereof with its' upper edgeportion close to the upper edge of the toning 4area. therebv,

o to determine the line of demarcation between the cemented anduncemented portions.

31. In a fonng cementmfr machine. ,a movablv mounted cement-applyingdevice. means for supporting a lasted' shoe for turning Q movement tolpresent,successive portions of th'epfoxing area of they shoe to theapplving device. means for'holding said device in cement-applyingrelation' to the shoe. and shielding means interposed between saiddevice and vthe shoe and having an edge in close relation to the upperedge of the foxing area of the shoe thereby to limit the application ofcement to portions of the shoe below that edge. l Y .55, 32.\In a foxingcementing machine'. a cement-applying device to deposit afstrpe ofcement around a shoe, a movable support for said device, means forsupporting a shoe constructed and arranged to present various portionsof the foxing area successively to said applying device, and shieldingmeans, interposed between the applying device and the shoe, fordetermining theupper limit of the stripe of cement deposited on theshoe, said means being constructed and arranged cement applying device.a member constructtestimony whereof I aiix m si ature. STEPHEN W. O N.

